


across the window

by ninetysfunk



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Teenagers, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Drabble, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt, M/M, Neighbors, Past, Promises, Strangers to Lovers, Suburbia, Summer, Summer Romance, Summer Vacation, Time Skips, Waiting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-23
Updated: 2019-03-23
Packaged: 2019-11-25 18:12:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 20
Words: 12,284
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18169559
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ninetysfunk/pseuds/ninetysfunk
Summary: They say love comes in the most unlikely of forms, and love came to Yukhei in the form of the boy who lived a window away.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> ge ge means older brother in Chinese and po po and nai nai means grandfather and grandmother.
> 
> NOTE that this is a short story and most of the chapters are drabbles, they are not full thousand plus words chapters, hope you enjoy!

Yukhei feels the plane land safely on the concrete ground and waits for the sound of the flight attendant telling them to kindly exit the plane. He looks out of the window and stares at the airport, he already missed his friends back home and dreaded staying a whole three months in a country he knew little to nothing about except about the Korean war which he learnt about in History but how could that possibly help someone wanting to visit Korea for the first time?

He finally hears the lady tell the passengers to leave the plane, he pulls out his bag from under his seat and swings it over his back, he stands up but ducks his head a little because of his insane height. He slowly walks out of the plane, he didn't move slow he just blamed the rest of the passengers for being slow. But he was just being an impatient prick with his long ass legs and walking speed of a cheetah running in the wild.

He walked behind his parents as his younger brother stood next to him, clutching a brown teddy bear in his arms as his parents discussed something with each other. Yukhei couldn't care less what they were doing, he just wanted to get to his his grandparent's house and sleep.

He walked up to the immigration counter and stamped his passport, he walked out of the arrival terminal and waited for his parents.

He felt his younger brother tug at pants and he looks down at him, "Ge, do you think po po and nai nai are scary?"

Yukhei shakes his head and smiles, "I've met them before when they were living in China, they're nice people and they loved me a lot, I'm sure they'll love you just as much."

The smaller boy frowns, "I'm scared... I don't know this place, ge."

Yukhei picks up his younger brother and carries him, "Don't be scared, Yun, you have me remember?" He pinches his little brother's nose and he giggles, the boy wraps his arms around his older brother's neck and closes his eyes.

He watches his parents walk out of the terminal, his mother walks up to him and smiles, "Is Yunhao sleeping?"

The taller boy nods, "Anyway, what are we doing now?"

His mother looks around, "Well, a driver should be waiting for us... Ah there he is!" She walks up the man holding a sign saying, Welcome Mrs and Mr Wong.

Yukhei can't help but look at the sign and cringe, he drags his bag along with him as he follows his parents out of the airport with his brother still sleeping in his arms. He walks out and looks at the black car, he places his luggage in the back and enters the car, his brother stirs a little and cuddles up to Yukhei more.

The car drives off and Yukhei looks out the window as the scenery of Korea in the summertime drove past him, his headphones plugged into his ears and he rests his head against the headrest and closes his eyes.


	2. the boy across the window.

It had been around a week since Yukhei and his family arrived. He spent a lot of time with his grandparents who were getting used to the Korean culture and described it as 'A breath of fresh air'.

He would play in the garden with brother and ate many traditional dishes and some of his grandparent's specials. He also had cooped up in his room a lot, texting his friends back in Hong Kong such as Yangyang who had gone back to Germany to visit his family and Kunhang or as he liked to be called, Hendery went back to Macau to visit his family as well. It seemed that most of his friends, too, were out of the country, while some like Kun and Xiaojun stayed back and spent their summer at home resting.

Yukhei laid in his bed and shook his legs according to the beat of the song that was blaring through his speakers, his room was pretty normal, a queen-sized bed situated in the middle of the room and a cupboard to keep his clothes, a dressing table with a mirror and a desk with a chair. His room felt like the one at home which he liked very much as he felt he was more at home rather than in a foreign country, surrounded by people he didn't know, speaking in languages he could understand but felt weird to hear more than usual. But it's not like he ever really left the house.

He sits up and looks around the room, opening drawers, tracing his hand over the table and such. His eyes trail up towards the window, he never noticed the window at first, I mean of course he did but he never paid it much attention.

He looks out and all he can see is the window to the neighbour's house. He saw a boy, probably the same age as him, blond hair and sat down in front of his desk and did what seemed like drawing. He erased it a few times,  turned his book around and lightly presses the pencil against the book. He repeats the process, again and again, Yukhei found himself staring longer than expected and when he finally realises he blinks a little to himself and shakes his head.

He walks back to his bed and lies down again, he closes his eyes and falls asleep not realising that on the other side of the window, the boy looked back at the window as though he knew someone was watching him.


	3. a window away.

It was three am and as usual, Yukhei couldn't sleep thanks to his terrible insomnia. He kicks his duvet a little and stares blankly at the ceiling, he assumed the whole house was sleeping right about now.

Everything was dead silent, he could probably hear a pin drop. He tosses and turns in the bed and ends up shoving his face into the pillow, he sighs and lies his cheeks against the pillow. He shuts his eyes close but only to have them open within the next second when he hears very soft sobs from the window of his room. He starts to get scared,  _A ghost?_ He wonders to himself.

He throws the covers off him and sits in the bed suspiciously, craning his neck towards the window, it was very much transparent and he could see anything on the other side. He gets up and walks over to the window, it wasn't exactly bright so he could hardly see much but his vision was good enough to let him see well in the dark.

He stands in front of the window and squints his eyes to see the boy who lived across him, knees against his chest next to the window as he cried silently to himself but guess it wasn't silent enough for Yukhei.

The taller boy opens his window as silently as possible as to not snap the other out of his little crying moment. He reaches a hand out to the other window, the houses were pretty close and the distance between him and the opposite window wasn't that far, probably a few centimetres away. He knocks it as gently as possible, the other boy looks at him and furrows his eyebrows.

Yukhei mouths for him to open the window and the latter just stares at him suspiciously before opening it as cautiously as possible, being wary of Yukhei.

The taller sat on the stool he had dragged from the corner of the room and smiled at the puffy-eyed boy, "You okay?"

He shakes his head, "No, obviously, why would I be crying?"

"Okay, attitude," Yukhei raised his eyebrows in shock.

The light haired boy laughed and shook his head, "I'm sorry, I just- I just, am not at my greatest right now..."

Yukhei sighs and rests his chin on his palm, "Care to say why? I'm not going to force you though, you can always keep it to yourself."

The blond boy sighed and drops his head down, "I wouldn't normally share these things with a stranger but, you're the only one here to listen at three in the morning so why not," He shrugs, "I was dating this boy for around a year now, it would be a year in a month, but I went out to meet him just now and I thought it was a normal date at the local diner but no, he-he wanted to break up because I wasn't good enough, because he had found someone better. I pretended to not care and just smiled at him and left, wishing him the best in his future endeavours, but I couldn't help but feel myself and my heart falling apart slowly. I loved him so so dearly, I loved his stupid bunny-like smile, I miss his black curly hair, I just fucking miss him and I hate that he had to leave me that way."

Yukhei noticed his breath getting shakier as he continued talking and reached his hand out and placed it on the other boy's shoulder, "I'm sorry... I know it's hard and I know you're hurt, but people like this don't deserve our tears and our efforts, the fact that he said you weren't good enough and that he found someone else just shows how much of a dickwad he is. You're such a pretty boy and it'll be such a waste if these tears destroyed it," Yukhei wipes his tears away with a smile pressed against his face.

The once crying boy now turned into a deep shade of red, he pushed away Yukhei's hands and laughs, "Thank you, maybe you're right, maybe I shouldn't think about too much because he was such a dick anyway."

Yukhei pats his head and laughs, "That's the spirit. I'm Yukhei by the way, I'm always a window away if you need me."

"Thank you, Yukhei, I'm Jungwoo, I hope that if you need comfort in the night I'll always be here," He flashes a smile which Yukhei feels his heart explode at.


	4. in my mind.

It had been a whole week since that late night incident with Jungwoo, he hadn't forgotten his toothy grin and how he managed to force a smile on despite being absolutely heartbroken.

He found himself daydreaming at the thought of his smile at the dining table, he smiled a little to himself and felt his brother poke him.

"Thinking about your girlfriend?" He mocks and Yukhei laughs.

"Bold of you to assume it's a girl," Yukhei taps on his nose which confuses his brother.

"A boy? Can boys daydream about boys too?" His brother asked excitedly.

Yukhei nods with a smile, "Of course! And girls can daydream about girls too! You can daydream about anyone despite their gender."

Yunhao nods to himself and smiles, "I'm going to daydream about Xinghao then!" He skips away and Yukhei laughs to himself as he watched his younger brother try to think about his best friend.

He shakes his head and tilts his head back, Jungwoo hadn't gotten out of his mind and it wasn't as though it was bugging Yukhei, he just wished he had more excuses to see him or his smile again. He could just initiate a conversation through the window but he was too much of a coward to even look through the window now.

So he was just left there with his thoughts of the cute blonde haired boy once again.

In the other house though, Jungwoo sat in his room, staring into Yukhei's empty room in the hopes that he'll come by the window again and be able to catch a glimpse of his face once again, but his face was always in his mind, it was hard not to have him be all over his mind.

He traces his pencil across the paper, slightly darkening the lines as he went along. He puts down his pencil and stares at the drawing, he sticks his tongue out slightly and tilts his head. This was his third drawing of Yukhei this week, he felt that he was too obsessed with the taller's face but he just enjoyed drawing it so much, from his lips to puppy-like eyes, maybe his heart raced at the thought of him just as it did when he fell in love with Doyoung for the first time.

**_Doyoung._ **

Jungwoo felt his heart clench in pain at the thought of the boy, he never expected High School sweethearts to last but something about their love made him think otherwise, he felt that they could dominate the world if they tried.

But that wasn't the case after all.

Having to know he wasn't good enough for Doyoung pained him, he just wanted to know what he could've done better for him to make him stay. He envied his friends being able to have such simple and satisfying relationships.

He was jealous of Johnny and Ten being able to love each other without barriers, he was jealous of Jaehyun and Taeyong who managed to resolve every problem calmly and still love each other. He was jealous of everything his friends had that he didn't.

Why couldn't Doyoung and he be that way? He never understood it but love never made sense anyway.


	5. five am.

Jungwoo laid with his head facing the window, he stared at the window opposite his and sighs. Two weeks since they last talked, two weeks since Doyoung broke up with him and since Yukhei magically made him feel better about the break up, every time he sat in his room and looked out the window, Yukhei was never there, of course, he knew he had a life as well but he just wished he could see him more often.

He sits up and gets out of the bed, he sits down in front of the window and pulls it up, he reaches a hand out hesitantly, he draws his hand back for a bit, wondering if knocking at five am was really a good idea. He reaches his hand out and balls into a fist, he gently knocks and waits for a bit. Time passed by and there was no answer, he sighs and closes the window only to realise the window on the other side opened, revealing Yukhei with his bed head but eyes still awake.

"O-oh hey," Jungwoo stutters softly.

Yukhei smiles, "Hey, it's five what's up?"

Jungwoo rests his chin against his palm and shrugs, "I was just bored, I wanted to see if you were awake."

"Well, I am now," Yukhei says and drags a stool towards him, he sits down and looks at Jungwoo, "How have you been the past two weeks?"

Jungwoo rolls his eyes and sighed, "Been good, thank god it's summer so I wouldn't have to see him every day. I heard from my friend's he's got a new guy or something. It honestly doesn't matter, I gave him my all and that's all that really matters," He smiled.

Yukhei felt his heart die at that smile, the smile he had been longing to see for the past two weeks, he couldn't help but smile as well, his heart was wrenching knowing that despite being completely broken by some random boy he still managed to put on a smile.

"How do you do it?" Yukhei questioned.

Jungwoo looks at him in confusion, "Do what?"

"Be adorable without effort."


	6. i'm not sorry.

Jungwoo's heart goes insane as he remembers what Yukhei said that night, it was haunting him like a nightmare during a fever. 

_Be adorable._

Jungwoo goes red as his voice rang in his head, he whines and buries his head in his arms, his friends get worried at his sudden actions and his friend poked him, "Hey, Woo, you there?" Johnny asked.

Jungwoo threw up a thumbs up and allowed it to fall back down, he wasn't doing good, Yukhei was tearing him apart and it drove him insane.

Taeyong laughs in the background, "Is our little boy falling in love... Again?"

The blonde haired boy sat up and pushed Taeyong away, "I'm not! I'm just tired!"

"Eh... That's not what you said last night," Yuta teased him.

"Oh, not you too!" Jungwoo whined, "He's really cute and annoying it makes me upset!"

Taeyong and Ten's eyes widened and direct their attention to the crossed armed boy sitting in the far end of the booth, "He?!" They said in unison.

"Dear god, what have I done?" Jungwoo shuts his eyes and mutters silently to himself.

-

"I don't know Kun!" Lucas yells.

Xiaojun was dying of laughter over the call, "Oh my god, this is so funny, that was just three nights ago and you're going insane! I've never seen you this panicky since, Yuqi!"

He slums into his chair and groans, "I'm not sorry though, I said what I said, he was really cute guys!"

Kun sighs, "Are you sure? You'll be back in Hong Kong in the next few weeks, what will you do?"

Yukhei taps his chin, he hadn't thought about it, he was so caught up in Jungwoo and his family he barely thought of going home, "I don't know, and I don't want to think about it if I'm being honest."

"How can you not?" Yangyang asks, "It's the reality of it all, I just don't want you to be hurt, Xuxi."

Yukhei shrugs, "I'm so caught in the moment, I'd rather not think of the inevitable fate that I have which is leaving him."

"So are none of us going to ask him when he'll date this boy before it's too late," Hendery asked, the rest agreed and Yangyang moved closer to the screen.

"Why not tonight, lover boy?" He smirked.

"I'm ending this call right now."


	7. groceries and what not

"Yukhei!" His mother yelled as he knocked on his door, "Get out! I need you to help me with something?"

The boy groaned and got up from his bed, he opens the door to reveal a very stressed mother, "What's going on?"

She groans, "I was going to cook something but I forgot a few things, I need carrots, cabbage, soya sauce and potatoes," She shoves the money she had been holding into his hand, "Here's the money go now!"

"Wait but mom-"

"No buts! Go now!"

She pushes him out of his room and he sighs, he really had no choice right now but to leave his house and explore the neighbourhood. He puts on his shoes and walks out of the door, the bright summer sun nearly blinding him due to him being in the dark for weeks. He puts a hand over his eyes and squints, he walks across the street as carefully as possible, he looks around and finds some little signs indicating where to go, he reads some of the Korean that was labelled and follows it.

He walks down the path and looks around him, the neighbourhood was pretty and small, quiet and comfortable, he wouldn't mind living here in the future. Small bushes laid along the sidewalks, flowers all over the empty road and the way the sun shined on the different houses and the way the shadows laid gently on the ground. The neighbourhood was extremely beautiful now that he had seen it for himself. He should head out more.

The convenient store comes into view with cartons of vegetables and foam boards with signs indicating the price next to them. He approaches the numerous amounts of vegetables and recalls what his mother had asked him to buy.

**_Carrots, cabbage, soya sauce and potatoes._ **

He looks around, picking up a few of the vegetables she had asked for and puts them in clear plastic bags, he analyses every inch and decides which one is good enough and places them in. Once he feels satisfied with the amount, he steps into the cold store and looks for the sauce section, he looks at the aisle and tries his best to find whichever brand his mother preferred. His eyes land on the brand he recognised from the kitchen back home in Hong Kong, he smiles and picks it up. He walks to the counter with his hands full of items and places them down.

The cashier types in the products and brings the bottle of soya sauce under the scanner and scans them, he puts them in a bag and smiles, "That will be nine seventy."

He pulls out the money his mother gave him and takes the bag, of course, thanking and bowing to the cashier before leaving because well, basic courtesy.

He steps out of the store and looks around, he didn't exactly want to go home just yet, he wanted to explore more of what this neighbourhood had to offer and he looks to his left, just to his luck there was a small park there, he makes his way to the direction of the park and crosses the street, making sure there weren't any cars.

He walks past the few trees, people taking their daily jogs and strolls and couples sitting on the grass with their blankets on the ground as they fed each other food, then some people who were walking their dogs... and cats.

He weirdly looks at his man who was walking his cat as if it were a dog and Yukhei didn't question it for another second.

He continues walking and looking around, not paying attention to the person he was clearly about to crash into.

But it seemed as though the other didn't either.

"Ow," The person whispered softly as they rubbed their back a little from the sudden impact.

Yukhei looks towards the person and as expected but yet unexpectedly, it was Jungwoo, he felt his heart stop for a second but then again, he just knew no one could sound as soft as him, "Jungwoo?" He gets up and pulls the boy up, "I'm sorry, I wasn't looking... Are you okay though? Is your back okay? Come sit here."

He places him down on the bench near to them and Jungwoo smiles, "It's fine, I just had dance the other day and I fell on my back and it still hurts."

Yukhei's eyes widened more in fear, "Oh my god, I'm so so so sorry! This is all my fault, can you walk? Do I have to carry you? Do you need-"

Jungwoo places a hand on his shoulder and gives him a reassuring smile, "It's fine, Yukhei. What are you doing here?"

"Oh," He lifts his bag up and shakes it a little, "My mom wanted me to get some things from the store."

Jungwoo nods a little and slowly gets up, Yukhei rushes towards him and holds him by the waist. Jungwoo can feel his heartbeat increasing and a tingling sensation rises up in his face, he looks away in embarrassment and smiles, "Yukhei, please I'm completely fine..."

"How can you possibly say that when I just found out you were injured before and I probably made it worse?" Yukhei frowned.

Jungwoo shakes his head, "God, you're insufferable."


	8. falling, hard

Yukhei couldn't bear the guilt he was carrying the whole day, he couldn't believe he did that to Jungwoo and to know he got hurt before. Was he really a lost cause when it came to romance? 

He couldn't stand it, he had to do something, maybe say sorry for the nth time that day, talk to him, he just needed to do something.

He hops off his bed and opens his window, he looks into the opposite window, he could see Jungwoo laying in his bed with his phone light illuminating his face. He could hardly see him as his windows were slightly tinted, but he could see his eyes tracing his screen and his hair fell to the side, his plump lips slightly apart and he could almost feel his soft skin just by looking at him. He knocks the window gently and Jungwoo's eyes ripped from his screen and looks towards the window to see Yukhei sitting there against the window frame with a smile, he couldn't help but smile too. He gets up from his bed and sits down on his chair, he pulls his window up, "How can I help you?"

Yukhei feels all his confidence go just by hearing Jungwoo's soft voice, he tilts his head down and frowns, "I just wanted to know if you were okay. I made quite an impact just now-"

"Good god, Yukhei I don't know how many times I have to tell you it's okay. You even walked me home, I am fine," Jungwoo sighs, "You're really apologetic."

"I know, it's really bad," Yukhei laughs to himself, "I just feel really bad."

"I can tell," Jungwoo adds in.

Yukhei looks up and him, "I'm extremely bored, I have nothing to do, who knew Korea could be this boring?"

Jungwoo tilts his head in confusion, "You're not from around here? I thought you moved here?"

The other shakes his head, "No, I'm from Hong Kong, I'm just here for summer to visit my grandparents, they live here."

Jungwoo feels his heart sink, he wasn't going to be here any longer, he won't have anyone to talk to anymore. Truth be told, the few times he's talked to Yukhei he felt as though he knew him for years, talking was so simple, he could never get tired of his voice, how deep it was, his slightly loud laugh that echoed through the street when they talked at night, and the way his features managed to stand out even in the dark nights. Maybe he was falling, hard.

"How long do you have left?" Jungwoo mumbles as he lets his head drop slightly.

"Uhm, a month and two weeks? I have track practice the last month because of competitions, I advanced to the nationals and I just need to get that gold medal and carry on my school's legacy. You can watch it online if you'd like, it's on the 30th of August, it's a national competition so it would obviously be aired across the globe," Yukhei proudly says with a grin. How could Jungwoo just not love this boy at all?

"I'll be sure to watch you, and cheer you on."


	9. maybe.

Two weeks have gone by and it dawned on Jungwoo that he had a month left with Yukhei, they spent a lot of time talking at night and coincidentally crossed paths at the park. Long story short, they did spend a lot of time together. It did give the two a chance to get to know each other's personalities better, Jungwoo was very introverted but knew how to open up easily, he could hold a conversation well despite awkwardness and enjoyed art, he showed Yukhei some of his sketches and finished artworks on his tablet and Yukhei claimed he had never seen someone's art so beautiful before. Yukhei enjoyed talking and laughing a lot, he joked around a lot as well, he was really loud and extremely extroverted, he was extremely athletic and took pride in it, he would show off his achievements with Jungwoo who would then roll his eyes and called Yukhei a show-off.

It would be a lie if Jungwoo and Yukhei said they hadn't grown more attached to each other over the course of these two weeks, as though they were meant to meet and meant to be, they talked for hours on end like friends who met up after years of not seeing each other. 

Jungwoo couldn't keep his mind off the Chinese boy, he constantly found himself filling up his sketchbook with drawings of Yukhei all over it, he would hang out with his friends at the local diner and instead of talking he spent his time in the booth just doodling away. Ten, and let me quote him on this, said that Jungwoo was completely obsessed and it's not like Jungwoo could deny it, he truly was, he didn't want Yukhei to go, he didn't want him to leave at all but love was tragic and it was inevitable.

Yukhei would skype his friends and never ever did he shut up about Jungwoo, like Ten, Yangyang said he was obsessed and unlike Jungwoo he would deny it but despite the shit camera quality he could never hide that slight tint of pink on his cheeks and the tip of his ears.

Maybe, they were truly falling for each other and hard. Yukhei didn't want to leave and Jungwoo didn't want him to leave.

They would occasionally look into each other's windows and catch the other staring back, they would look away almost immediately as to not embarrass themselves even more.

Yukhei couldn't help but fall deeply into Jungwoo's eyes, he could find every star that existed in his eyes and Jungwoo couldn't help but feel as though Yukhei's voice placed him a state of tranquillity.

Maybe was out of the question, they were falling hard, and fell more and more with each passing day. It was only a matter of time before either of the two could no longer keep it in and confess.


	10. i could hold your hand.

"No you don't get it, Johnny and Ten are so in love, they can't hold a proper conversation without stopping midway and staring into each other's eyes, they feel as though they came out of a fucking fanfiction it's so weird," Jungwoo groans.

"Yeah because they probably are, imagine if our whole lives was just one big fanfiction, how cool would that be?" Yukhei's eyes trailed off as he got too lost in his own thoughts.

Jungwoo slaps Yukhei's forehead gently and rolls his eyes, "Don't be stupid, Wong Yukhei, only good things happen in fanfictions, we all know that would never happen in real life."

Yukhei squints his eyes at him suspiciously, "And how would you know? You're not god."

"I could be, you may never know," Jungwoo shrugged.

"You probably are for all we know, you sure do look like a Greek god," Yukhei nudges him with a smirk and all he got back was an eye roll.

"Don't, be, stupid," He wacked the back of his head.

Yukhei laughed and they continued to walk through the park, it was two in the morning and the two wanted to get out of the house badly, they spent so much time rotting in their bedrooms they wanted to be civilised human beings and actually live a life.

Summer did indicate higher temperatures but that didn't stop Seoul's cold nights to bite people in the ass. Jungwoo breathed into his hands and rubbed it hard to cause some sort of friction to warm his hands.

Yukhei notices the shorter boy shivering a little and coughs a little, "You know I could hold your hand or something, right?"

Jungwoo freezes in his steps, he couldn't seem to hear that properly. He feels his heart beat fast again and his mind go at a thousand miles per second, this doesn't go unnoticed to Yukhei who then looks back at him worryingly, "Did I do something wrong?"

Jungwoo blinks a little and looks back at Yukhei and shakes his head, "N-no you didn't..."

"Well, could I, uhm, hold your hand then?" He tilts his head down.

Jungwoo laughs and slides his hand into Yukhei's, he intertwines their finger and slimes, "You always could."


	11. like? no, love.

Walks in the park became more frequent, holding hands came more naturally and the two never minded it at all. They enjoyed the warmth of each other's hands and the physical comfort of each other, but they were getting more broke by the day as they spent so much money on ice cream every night.

The sat on the same park bench Yukhei made Jungwoo sit in when he bumped into each other, they were sharing some stories of school and Yukhei shared his experiences in being a High School student in Hong Kong.

"Ah, and there was this girl, Yuqi, she had a crush on me for a while and we dated for around three months but we figured out we didn't actually like each other, rather we didn't exactly like the opposite gender. She's dating some girl now and I'm just focusing on track," Yukhei said.

"You're gay?" Jungwoo shockingly says.

Yukhei could've sworn he was about to choke on his ice cream once those two words left Jungwoo's mouth, "I mean, I'm bi, I guess. I prefer guys but I wouldn't mind dating a girl if the connection is really there. But I don't know, Jungwoo does holding hands in the park at two in the morning seem like a very, straight, thing to do?"

"Points were made," Jungwoo nods in agreement.

"However though, I think I like someone right now?" Yukhei leans back.

Jungwoo raises his eyebrows and looks at Yukhei, "Oh? Spill."

"Like? No, love. I love him, I can't seem to get him off my mind, every day I don't see him the more I miss him. It's like he's some sort of drug, you get me?" Yukhei nudges him.

Jungwoo can't help but nod in agreement, it was truly hurting him, he thought he could win over Yukhei but it seemed too far fetched now. The way he talked about this, boy, tore him apart.

"You," Yukhei said out of the blue.

"Pardon?"

"You, I like you. No, I take that back, I fucking love you more than anything, I've never fallen so hard for someone, I like you so much it makes my heart ache, you don't understand," Yukhei leans forward and looks at Jungwoo.

The latter is at a loss for words, he was completely starstruck, maybe Doyoung leaving was just an excuse for Yukhei to enter his life and completely take over it. He was too caught up in his thoughts to notice Yukhei leaning in, closing the gap between them, he places a hand on Jungwoo's shoulder, he leans forward and places his lips against Jungwoo's.

Yeah, he was really going insane.

He felt sparks burst beneath his skin and the contact between Yukhei's lips and his sent shivers down his spine, he wanted everything to just stay the way it was forever. He felt time stop and the only thing that mattered was Yukhei's lips on his, his lips, that's all that mattered.

He puts his hand onto his neck and pulls him in deeper, the kiss got deeper within seconds, what was once an innocent confession kiss turned into something more passionate and with a hint of longing and want.

This was all Yukhei ever wanted, he just wanted to be the one to kiss Jungwoo, he wanted to be the one Jungwoo longed for like he did.

They pulled away to catch their breath and looked at each other, they laughed, maybe a little too loudly and placed their foreheads against each other and smiled, "I like you too, Yukhei."


	12. cuddles and rain.

They said rain was good weather for sex but Jungwoo and Yukhei begged to differ. They advanced from talking through windows to entering each other's rooms from their windows.

The two laid huddled up against each other on Yukhei's fairly large bed, the duvet covering each other as a High School Musical 3 played on Jungwoo's laptop. The gentle sounds of the rain outside contrasted well with Gabriella's and Troy's Can I Have This Dance softly playing on the laptop.

Jungwoo cuddled up closer into the crook of Yukhei's neck and the latter wrapped himself tighter around the older.

"What if Sharpay was gay?" Jungwoo muttered.

Upon hearing his boyfriend's statement Yukhei couldn't help but laugh, "Highly doubt it, but, oh my god what if Troy was gay? It only makes sense that he was my first sexual awakening."

"He was?" Jungwoo looks up at him.

"Yeap," Yukhei nodded, "I thought it was just my stomach being funny, but it felt that way every time I watched him, I came to the conclusion that I liked Troy as a crush but nothing much after that. I was just left with the thought that I liked boys."

Jungwoo frowned and shuts the laptop close, Yukhei looks back at him confusingly, "What's going on?"

"You had a crush on him!" Jungwoo whined.

Yukhei rolled his eyes and pulled him closer, "That was years ago, I only have a crush on you and I only feel the butterflies in my stomach for you."

He pulls Jungwoo closer and connects their lips. The two smiles into the kiss and pulled each other closer.

The rain never stopped that day, but the two never paid any mind, they only cared about each other's company.


	13. the city.

One and the half weeks left and the two finally decided to go on their first ever date rather than cuddling at home, not like they hated cuddling but they wanted to do as much together as possible.

They sat in the bus together, hands together as they shared a earpiece. They found out they had similar tastes in music so they often listened to music together.

Yukhei couldn't help but feel a little nervous, he hadn't left the neighbourhood much since he got to Korea, but he was glad that he would be experiencing the city with Jungwoo.

He tightens his grip on Jungwoo's hand who then looks at him, "You alright?"

Yukhei nods nervously, "Yeah, just a little nervous, but excited too..."

Jungwoo chuckles and leans his head on Yukhei's shoulder, "There's nothing to be scared of, you have me, remember?"

"Yeah..."

-

They walked through the alley with a bunch of stares surrounding them, people of all ages around them, some friends, some couples but Jungwoo and Yukhei didn't pay much attention, they were too caught up in each other's company to notice the world around them.

While walking, Yukhei looks at a store behind Jungwoo and his eyes land on a necklace. His eyes lit up in excitement and tells Jungwoo to wait outside of the store.

He walks in and looks at the necklace that caught his eyes, he picks it off the little hook it was hanging on and walks to the cashier.

She looks at the necklace and smiles, "A couple necklace? Is it for your special girl?"

"Boy," He corrects her.

Her mouth curves into an O and bows, "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to assume..."

"It's fine! It happens a lot," He laughs, he looks back at the blonde haired boy who was now petting a cat that had walked up to him. He just wanted to stay with him forever, maybe run away with him to a place no one could find them, he wanted to spend his whole life with this boy who managed to win his heart just by his soft voice and adorable personality, "And I can't get mad."

She puts the necklace in a bag and looks at Jungwoo, "You love him a lot, don't you?"

"I really do," He tilts his head down and chuckles to himself.

He reaches out his money and the cashier pushes the money back, "You can buy this anywhere, but you can never truly find a love so pure and so raw. I'm wishing you my best."

He moves his hand back and smiles, "Thank you."

He walks out of the store and looks back at the cashier who had suddenly disappeared, he didn't pay it much mind and walked up to Jungwoo who was still petting the cat.

"Woo," He spoke up.

Jungwoo looks up and smiles, he stands up and sighs, "So what happened?"

He smiles and lifts up the two necklaces, Jungwoo tilts his head in confusion, "Necklaces happened?"

"Not just any necklaces, they're a couple necklace!" He puts the necklace around Jungwoo and smiles, "Look, you have the key and I have the lock," He lifts the necklace he wore. He inserts the key into the lock and smiles, "It shows how you managed to unlock the lock to my heart."

Jungwoo rolls his eyes and tilts his head as he flushed, "Stop being so goddamn cheesy, Wong Yukhei."


	14. my first and my last.

"You know, truth be told, I've never felt this way for anyone in my whole sixteen years of living," Yukhei turns his head towards Jungwoo.

They laid in the park, at midnight, of course, staring up at the starry night sky, typical couple things. 

Jungwoo looks at him in shock, "You're telling me someone like you has never fallen in love before?"

Yukhei shakes his head, "Nope, never. I'm glad you're my first though."

"You say that like that you're going to have someone else once you leave me," Jungwoo pouts.

"My first, and my last," Yukhei pulls him closer, "No one will ever replace you, trust me on that."

Jungwoo smiles into Yukhei's chest, he can hear the soft beating of his heart that brought him nothing but peace for he knew and was sure this heart only beats for him.


	15. i love you.

It was Yukhei's final night in Korea, if he was being frank he was dreading it more than anything, Yeah, he was going to miss his grandparents for he never got the chance to see them, but the one he was going to miss the most above all was Jungwoo, to have to leave this boy he loved like there was no tomorrow in a country so far from him, he was going to go mad.

He pays the cashier for the ice cream and walks out of the store, he looks across the street and sees Jungwoo waiting there as he fiddled with the small necklace they bought a few weeks ago. He smiles softly to himself and crosses the street, he walks up to Jungwoo and slips his hand into his.

"That took you a while," Jungwoo remarks.

Yukhei shrugs and passes the ice cream to him, "Just thinking, you know?"

They begin to walk through the park with their fingers intertwined, eating the ice cream they had bought with little to no conversation. The atmosphere felt off, as though there was something the two wanted to say but couldn't bring themselves to do it.

They stop at their usual bench and sat down, hands still interlocked.

Jungwoo decides that the tension was too much and looks at Yukhei, "What's going on?"

Yukhei sighs and turns his head to his boyfriend, "It's just that, it's my last night here, I leave tomorrow at four."

Jungwoo felt his whole world collapse around him, he was so caught up with their dates and what not to remember that Yukhei would be leaving soon. He looks away and swallows back the lump that was slowly growing in his throat, "O-oh?"

"Yeah..." Yukhei sinks down into the bench.

They stay like this for a while. Honestly, there was nothing to say anymore, this was their fate and it was inevitable, they couldn't change it because Yukhei had commitments back in Hong Kong and Jungwoo too, just in Korea.

Yukhei leans his head against Jungwoo's shoulder, "You know, Jungwoo, I love you, I love you more than words could ever describe. I would lasso the sun for you, I would rob all the stars in the sky for you. Call me stupid, call me obsessed, I don't really care because you make me feel so worth it, you make me feel that I have something worth living for, something to smile about.I love you so dearly, I love you so much," He reaches his hand up and makes Jungwoo look at him, "Please, don't forget me."

Jungwoo leans his forehead against his, "You know I won't."


	16. don't leave me.

Yukhei opens his eyes and reaches out to check his phone, it was eleven and he looks towards his window and jumps off his bed. He looks through his window and sees Jungwoo laying his bed, sleeping soundly as ever, he sighs in relief and turns around, he buries his face in his palms and rubs his face.

He had to pack and he would be leaving at one in order to catch his flight at three, he pulls out his luggage and unzips it, he takes all his clothes that he had diligently folded and placed in his cupboard, he places them all inside and puts aside a pair of jeans and a shirt for the airport. He picks up one of his pants and notices something had fallen out of the pocket, he picks up the item and turns it around, he smiles to himself and recognises the photo. Hendery had taken it when they went over to his house for New Year's Eve, he stares at it a little and shoves it in his pocket.

He buckles it and presses against his clothes to make sure that he could zip up the luggage properly, he zips it up and puts it up right against the wall.

He stands up and looks around the room he had spent two months in, the same room he had found love in the boy who lived opposite him. He decides not to hurt himself even more and walks out of his room, he goes about his morning normally trying not to remind himself in a matter of hours he'll be driving off and leaving behind this neighbourhood he had managed to grow so attached to.

He sits down at his dining table and doesn't say a word, everyone knew something was going on for Yukhei was never silent, he would usually greet everyone with a loud good morning and his mother telling him to shut up, but everything felt different.

His parents glance anxiously each other and his mother smiles, "So, you ready to go home?"

He simply shrugs in reply and eats his toast.

His mother starts to get even more worried and places a hand on his, "Yukhei, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I am, are we leaving soon?" He asks.

She nods, "Yeah, the car will be coming over in about ten minutes"

"Ten?!" He exclaims, he looks at the clock and boy did time really pass by fast, it was already ten minutes to one and let's just say that didn't really help with the anxiety of leaving Jungwoo so soon.

He gets up from his chair and dashes up the stairs, he runs into his room and is greeted by Jungwoo sitting on his bed. He can hear the boy sniffling a little and wipes his face a little, "Ten minutes?"

"Jungwoo..." He walks up to him and wraps his arms around the crying boy.

"Don't leave, please don't leave me," He whispers into his lover's shoulder, Yukhei couldn't stop himself from the tears forming up in his eyes.

"I don't want to either," He replies, "I don't want to leave the only person that has managed to make me feel whole."

"Then don't, you can't leave me here alone, Yukhei," He says, he looks up at Yukhei who's eyes became slightly red from crying.

He doesn't reply, he just continues holding him in the hopes that if he held him longer time would stop just for a minute so he could save this memory that was so bittersweet. He pushes Jungwoo's hair up and plants a kiss on his forehead, he moves down to his nose and to his cheeks, he presses his nose against Jungwoo's and places a soft peck on his lips.

"Love is stupid, and it's also the most upsetting thing on earth. It makes you do crazy things for the other, it makes you feel crazy sometimes," He says as he stares into Jungwoo's eyes, "It makes you feel at home because you somehow find home in the other. And I found a home in you, Jungwoo."

The other bursts into tears and buries his head into Yukhei's chest, "I hate you, I hate you so much, I hate how you're so stupid, I hate how you're so funny, I hate how I feel giddy whenever I think about you, I hate the warm feeling I feel in my heart when you wrap your arms around me. I hate you so much, but I love you so much I hate it."

"That's a lot of hate," Yukhei laughs which only caused Jungwoo to laugh as well, he looks down at the shorter and smiles, "Go back home, don't cry anymore, don't waste your tears and have it stain your beautiful face. Lay in bed and think of me, don't ever forget me. I'll come back for you, I promise," He pushes Jungwoo gently towards the open window.

Jungwoo looks back at Yukhei who couldn't stop the tears from rolling down his face, "Go," Yukhei says with a forced smile.

The Korean climbs out of the window and into his, he looks out and sees Yukhei standing there with his hand pressed against the glass, he closes the window and turns his back on Yukhei. He couldn't stop himself from crying any longer. He stands in his room that felt so empty now and buries his head in his palms and bawls his eyes out.

"Yukhei! The car is here!" His mother calls out.

Yukhei grabs his luggage and before he could leave he looked out his window one last time, and saw Jungwoo standing there with his face in his palms. He could never forgive himself for hurting him like this, but he couldn't ever do anything.

He walks down the stairs and says goodbye to his grandparents, he puts on his shoes and exits the house. He walks to the car and places his bag in the back. He walks to the car door but before he could enter, he hears someone call out his name. He looks towards the voice and saw Jungwoo standing at his house door.

Yukhei couldn't handle it anymore, he runs up to Jungwoo and carries him in his arms, "I'm so sorry, I'm so fucking sorry. I love you, Jungwoo, I love you so much and I'm sorry."

"No don't say sorry, I love you, I love you so much more, you're my whole fucking world don't ever say sorry for being my whole world," He lifts up his necklace and lifts Yukhei's, he inserts the key and smiles, "I'll always be with you, in your heart, in this necklace. I'll never forget you, trust me on that."

Yukhei pulls out the photo from earlier and shoves it into Jungwoo's hands, "I'll come back, I don't know when, but one day, when the snow has fallen and it's midnight, I'll be there at the bench waiting for you and we'll connect our necklaces again. I'll come back for you, I promise. Wait for me, I'll come back home soon. Don't forget, four pm on the 30th of August, any sports channel. Cheer me on, alright?" He smiles and pulls Jungwoo back into the hug, "I love you sunshine, I love you."

He pulls away and steps back, "I said it before and I'll say it again, I love you and you're the only person I'll ever love," He runs back to the car and opens the door, he looks back at Jungwoo who stands there with tears dried up against his cheek, he smiles once more and enters the car.

His parents decide not to question it seeing the amount of tears rolling down his face, they leave him be and the car drives off. He doesn't take his eyes off Jungwoo until they drive away from view.

**_I'll come back for you._ **


	17. 30th of August.

Jungwoo rushes back home from school, he practically sprinted. He runs into his house and up to his room, he throws his bag down and closes the door. He opens up his laptop and types in any sports channel that could come into mind and checks to see if they were streaming the track competition, to his luck they were and he clicks on it.

He looks at the time and noticed it was ten minutes past four, he hoped he hadn't missed Yukhei yet. He watches the cameraman move from athlete to athlete as the speaker names all of the players.

"Li Taiyu representing Guangdong High School and finally, representing Huanlim High School, Wong Yukhei!"

Jungwoo watches as Yukhei smiles into the camera, it felt as though he smiling at him as he did a month ago, he notices that Yukhei was still wearing the necklace he bought and Jungwoo felt his heart clench. He looks up at his corkboard and looks at the photo of Yukhei he had given him before he left. He smiles and looks back at the screen, the athletes were warming up, some stretched, some ran around the stadium and this went on for five minutes.

He anxiously waited for the event to start, his eyes were only focused on Yukhei who was stretching with his coach next to him probably giving him words of advice. He watches as he practices his stance and throwing.

He heard the announcer say the event was about to start and Jungwoo squeals like a teenage girl looking at her celebrity crush.

He watches the other players throw and he had to applaud them, he had never paid much attention to javelin players at all but today was the day he truly did appreciate them, being able to throw that far was a talent, heck Jungwoo couldn't even throw a paper ball into a trash can accurately.

At last, Yukhei stepped onto the track, he picked up the javelin and took a few steps back, he pointed his empty hand up and held the javelin over his shoulder, he began running and till he was a few metres away from the stop line and he threw the javelin as hard as he could. The camera followed it and it landed exactly on the 75-metre line, cheers from the crowd could be heard, Jungwoo whispers a soft yes to himself and Yukhei looks at his school and throws up a fist.

There was a short break before the second round, Yukhei was now in the lead and Jungwoo decided to lay his head on his table, he turns his head towards his window and feels his heart sink. Truth be told, it hadn't hit him that Yukhei was gone and he could never accept it, though he promised he'll be back when the snow fell he went to the park every day at midnight in the hopes that he'll come back, but all he could do was dream.

-

The second round ended with Yukhei still in the lead, his throws increasing and ended up with an 80-metre throw, he was showered with nothing but shouts and cheers from the crowd but Jungwoo was no fool, he could see through him, something was hurting him, he couldn't place his finger on it but he was ready to end whoever managed to make him this way, still, despite the hurt he manages to carry his school to the finals.

Finals started and Jungwoo was on the edge of his seat, he watched the other eleven plays throw and they did well but he just wanted to see Yukhei win that gold medal.

"Next up is Darren Lim from Huayu Academy, alright he has thrown the javelin and my god, 89-metres? This is the first time Huayu Academy has ever made it this far! They are now in the lead," The reporter exclaims.

Jungwoo's eyes widened, he was glad he managed to throw so far but he looks at Yukhei who sat in his seat, he was up next and he looks at Darren with the dirtiest look ever. He forces on a simple and high-fives him.

Jungwoo held onto his necklace and muttered a simple prayer, in the hopes that Yukhei would win. He noticed Yukhei fiddle with his necklace as well and the blonde haired boy couldn't help but feel his heart warm up and the butterflies go wild in his stomach. He watches Yukhei stretch his arms a little and grabs his javelin, he steps on the starting line and begins running.

"Come on..." Jungwoo mutters hopefully.

Yukhei then throws the javelin with a loud and deep yell which echoes throughout the stadium, the camera follows it and Jungwoo shuts his eyes tight, but then hears loud cheers and Yukhei's voice from the laptop, he opens his eyes and saw that he had thrown it till the 95-metre line.

Jungwoo gets up from his chair and screams, "Yes! Oh my god yes!"

He kisses his necklace and smiles, "I knew you would do it."

-

The award ceremony started and Yukhei had his school flag wrapped around him, he stood at the top of the podium as the presenter places the gold medal around his neck. He holds up the medal and smiles at the camera as they took a photo.

He jumps off the podium but the cameraman stops him, "Yukhei! Is there anything you'd like to say? Anyone, you want to thank?"

Yukhei looks at him for a second and smiles, "I want to thank the other throwers for supporting me, my coach for being nothing but supportive and encouraging, my parents who never gave up hope on me, my younger brother for being my biggest supporter... And, Jungwoo, I don't know if you're watching back home but, I won this for you, you were my driving force every day and I never stopped missing you. I love you!" He smiles and shows a heart to the camera, he walks away and Jungwoo couldn't stop the tears from pouring, he had cried enough the past month but these weren't tears of sadness, he was happy, he was happy that Yukhei hadn't forgotten him.

He won that medal for him, he gave him encouragement during practice, that was all Jungwoo ever needed.


	18. graduation.

_Nine years later._

"Wong Yukhei, Masters in Biophysics."

Yukhei runs up the stage and shakes the principal's hand, "Thank you, sir," He takes the degree he had worked so hard for from him and smiles into the camera.

He walks off the stage and joins his friends in their seats, "Look at you, Mr Wong Yukhei, Biophysics major graduated with a master's degree," Yuta mocked.

"Ah shut up and go back to sucking Sicheng's face off," Yukhei rolled his eyes.

"You're just jealous," Sicheng teased.

"No, I'm not, I have someone waiting for me."

-

"Kim Jungwoo, Masters in Performing Arts."

Jungwoo walks up onto the stage, he shakes his principal's hand with the biggest smile he had ever worn. He looks towards the rest of the hall and bows, he makes his way down the stage and joins his friends. He looks at all the other graduates collect their degrees and smiles.

He made it, he finally did. After years and years of agony, he made it to where he is now, he could go anywhere now. But he couldn't have done it without this necklace he never once took off, without the memory of him, without hearing his voice call out his name. He made it to where he was thanks to him, and though he spent his nights at the same park, same bench, still no sign of him, he never gave up. He was determined.

The ceremony ends and everyone throws their hats in the air in unison. He looks over at his friends and they all had nothing but smiles on their faces, sharing laughter after years of hard work.

"So, what now?" Jaehyun said while he stared at his degree.

"I plan on settling down for a while, maybe go back to our old high school and teach in the Drama department," Ten says, he looks up at Johnny and plants a kiss on his lips, "Maybe move as well, who knows, I'll let time do its thing."

Everyone shared what they planned on doing but Jungwoo stood there, looking down at his necklace with a smile pressed against his face.

"What about you, Jungwoo?" Taeyong asks, snapping the younger out of his thoughts.

Jungwoo shrugs, "I don't know, maybe I'll just stay in Korea for a while, maybe I'll try out for a few gigs here and there, work my way to the top."

"Ah, Jungwoo our overachiever," Johnny laughs and Jungwoo punches his arm.

"It's not a bad idea, I may just end up living comfortably, alone," He sighs.

"What about him?" Ten asks.

"I don't know, I don't know if he will come back, if we'll cross paths one day, I know one day we'll see each other, just not right now."

-

"What now huh team?" Yuta says as he wraps his arms around Kun and Yangyang.

Kun smiles, "Well, political science can take me so far, I'll probably try out for a job somewhere, I'm not sure."

Yuta rolls his eyes and his eyes lands on Yangyang, "What about you, kid?"

"Literature major, what can I even do? Write books? I don't know, I don't think anyone has any idea what they plan on doing," Yangyang shrugs.

"Ah, you're right," Yuta nods and adverts his attention to Yukhei who was talking to Xiaojun in fast Chinese, "Hey! Wong, what are you going to do?"

Yukhei looks back at Yuta and smiles, "I'm going back home."


	19. nine years.

"Passengers in the Economy class you may now make your way to the exit, thank you for flying with Korean Air."

Yukhei sighs in relief, he walks to the overhead compartment and takes down his bag, he makes his way out of the plane and walks to the immigration, he looks out the window and smiles, it's been so long, his grandparents were now long gone, the house now laid in the hands of his parents but they never came to Korea so it was pretty vacant.

He makes his way to the counter and checks his passport, he walks out of the terminal and is greeted by the cold winter air, he opens up his phone and checks the weather, as he checked before, snow would fall and he wanted to be sure it would.

-

He thanks the driver and pays him, he hops out of the car and looks up at the house he once fell in love in. He smiles and unlocks the door, he walks in and the house seemed pretty clean, he assumed his parents had people over to clean it from time to time as no one really could.

He takes off his shoes and places his luggage in the living room, everything was just like how it was when he left, cosy and warm, he turns on the heating and hangs his coat on the rack, he walks around the house, it really felt as though he was back in the summer of 2010. He walks up the stairs and looks in his grandparent's room, he sees a portrait of them hung over the bed and smiles.

"Nai Nai, Po Po, I'm back," He whispers.

He walks out and looks down the hall, he sees the room he had once lived in, he walks towards the room, heart beating out of his chest, he opens the door and it was the exact same. He could almost see the memories of him and Jungwoo play as he enters. He opened up the cupboards which were empty like usual but it was just nice and it felt nostalgic.

He closes the doors and looks at the window, he slowly approaches it and looks out, he was greeted by the exact same window, and the exact same room, Jungwoo hadn't changed either. He didn't see any sign of the soft-spoken boy, which only disappointed him but maybe he was busy and he understood it.

He walks out of the room and closes the door behind him, not knowing that on the other side of the window, Jungwoo walked into his room, completely unknowing of the fact that Yukhei was back.

-

Jungwoo had started living alone in his house, his parents passed away when he was in his third year of University, they were pretty old and their death didn't hit him that hard, his sister moved out shortly after that but of course, helped him with finances and what not.

The house felt empty, it hurt a lot having no one around and not even the comfort of Yukhei's memories could've helped him. It was around this time he had gotten a dog to cheer him up in this large house. He named it Sushi, a play on Yukhei's name, Xuxi.

He slowly found comfort in the house and soon enough it felt as though this was how things always were.

His sister and he would visit their parents every month to pay their respects, no tears were ever shed, if there was anything their parents taught them was that crying over someone's death would never change the fact that they're gone, but this didn't stop Jungwoo. He was so soft-hearted and sensitive, he did cry every night, but he always felt their comforting presence around him which made him feel at peace.

He sits in his room after a good two hours of walking dog and laid in his bed, completely exhausted, for such a small dog he sure was fast, he was so tiny where did he store all that energy?

Jungwoo huffs a sigh and pulls out his phone from his pocket, it was six in the afternoon. He places his phone against his stomach and as if on cue, his stomach grumbled and it suddenly hit him that he hadn't eaten anything but a handful of almonds that day.

He gets up and walks down to the kitchen, he opens up his fridge and stares at his leftovers Taeyong had cooked when the group came over for a small graduation party, he couldn't exactly find anything else that could appetise him and he pulls out the containers from the fridge. He places them onto a plate and heats them up in the microwave.

The scent lingered around the house, he could hear his dog's paws pattering on the wooden flooring as it slowly got louder indicating he was getting closer to Jungwoo.

He runs into the kitchen and places his paws onto Jungwoo's leg and barks, Jungwoo sighs and bends down, "I'll give you some later, Sushi, it's still hot and I don't want you getting burnt."

The microwave dings and Jungwoo opens it up, he takes out the plate and takes a fork and spoon, he walks to his coffee table, he places the plate down and turns on the television.

Time passed by fast for the two, Yukhei spent most of his time out of his house and going around to the old stores which were still there and business was still great. He eats at the local diner as there was little- no there was nothing, back at the house. Jungwoo stayed in his house, watching television, texting and calling his friends, playing video games all till midnight.

-

Midnight rolled around, Jungwoo looked out the window and noticed it was snowing, he was so unaware he laughed, he opens up his wallet and looks at the Polaroid of Yukhei and sighs, "I'll see you soon."

He closes the wallet and grabs his coat and scarf, he puts his wallet in his pocket and turns off the lights in his house, he made sure Sushi had fallen asleep and he closed his front door.

The night was always colder than the day, as usual. He makes his way towards the park, his hand buried deep in his pocket with hot packs in them and buried his face in his scarf, he walks with his head low and only brought it up when he was crossing the road because, road safety.

He walks through the park with his head down, completely not looking around his surroundings because he came all the time he knew how to get there with his eyes closed.

He gets closer to the bench and removes his hand from his pockets and looks up, he freezes for a bit, he was so sure he was dreaming. He takes a step back a little, he felt his whole world stop as he saw the man before him.

"Y-yukhei..." He whispers softly to himself, the other simply smiled.

"Hey," Was all he could say back, he waited there for a few hours, and when he finally saw Jungwoo he was at a loss for words. His once blonde hair was now a more dark brown, his height had changed drastically since they last met. But his face never changed, he was still the same Jungwoo he fell in love with, he was still his first and last.

Jungwoo could feel the warm tears welling up in his eyes as it blurred his vision, he pulls out his wallet and looks down at the photo of Yukhei and back at him. He really was here, he really came back, he kept his promise. When the snow falls, at midnight, at that bench, he'll come back for him. He really did come back.

"Nine years, I waited for you at this bench for nine years."


	20. forever.

"I'm sorry," Yukhei tilted his head down in shame, "I'm sorry I left you without any way to contact me, I'm sorry I took so long, I'm so-"

Before he could even continue, Jungwoo ran up to him and placed his lips against his, he wrapped his arms around Yukhei's waist. Nine years, he waited nine years to kiss him again, he never forgot how his lips felt, he never forgot how he kissed him, and it never changed. He deepens the kiss, he turns his head slightly and he feels Yukhei's hands against his waists as he returns the kiss.

A kiss of longing, a kiss of nine years of waiting, they place all their emotions into this one kiss, making it- not just some simple and random kiss, a kiss to make up for the years of being apart for so long.

They pull away slightly to catch their breath. They rest their foreheads against each other and laugh softly.

"I missed you so much," Jungwoo whispered, "Every day I waited at this bench, and every day you never came it broke me. But I looked up at the sky and I knew that you were somewhere out there looking up at the same sky. But that will never make up for how long I've waited for you. I thought you had forgotten me."

Yukhei scoffs at his statement and pulls out the necklace from under his sweater, "I never forgot you, I never took this off, I never stopped thinking about you. The thought of you even pushed me to get a masters degree, so that I could come back to you proudly."

"Your 95-metres already made me so proud of you," Jungwoo smiled.

Yukhei pulled away and raised his eyebrows in shock, "You actually watched it?"

Jungwoo nodded, "How could I not? I would get every chance I could just to see you again."

Yukhei was flushed, he looks away and clears his throat, "D-did you hear what I said to you?"

"Of course I did, I never forgot about it," Jungwoo recalls what he had said, how he was dripping in sweat and how he held his medal in his hands proudly. He never could forget it.

They sit down on the bench next to each other, nothing was ever shared, just the comfort of each other's presence was all that they wanted.

Jungwoo suddenly rests his head against Yukhei's shoulder, "I graduated too."

"Oh? What did you do?" Yukhei asked curiously.

"Performing arts, masters degree as well," He says proudly.

"Ah! That's my boy!" He exclaims and pulls him closer, he plants a kiss on Jungwoo's forehead which sends tingles throughout his face.

"How long are you staying?" Jungwoo looks up at him.

Yukhei laughs and took Jungwoo's hand into his, "Forever."

"Forever?"

"Yeah, I moved here, I'm not going anywhere anymore, I'm with you till the end of the line," Yukhei says.

"A Captain America reference? Really?" Jungwoo laughs.

"Yes, don't hate on my king!" Yukhei pokes his nose, "But I mean it, I'm going to stay, and I'm going to make sure you'll never be alone again."

Jungwoo couldn't believe it, he really came home, he really came back for him. This was everything he wanted, this was what he wanted for the past nine years of waiting. He held this goof close to him, he held his stupid laugh close to his heart and recalled how it sounded every time he felt upset. He really was his happiness.

Jungwoo holds up his necklace and smiles, "I never took it off, and I kept your picture with me wherever I went."

"You did?"

"Yeah, I kept it in my pencil case in High School, I then kept it in my wallet once I started University," He opened up his wallet and Yukhei laughs, he takes the wallet and looks at himself.

"God I was so young!" He looks at himself in amazement.

"You didn't change at all though," Jungwoo replied, "Same eyes, same lips, same nose, same everything, even your huge ass hands didn't change, in fact, they got bigger what the hell!"

Yukhei passes Jungwoo back his wallet and pulled out his necklace, he picks up Jungwoo's necklace and inserted the key, "I'm home."

He leans down and places a kiss on Jungwoo's lips.

He was truly, back home.


End file.
